Although no references were found specifically relating to the present invention, those references typical of other marginally related prior art found in the process of a patent search include United States patents to Rodriquez, U.S. Pat. No. 5,295,494; Morenings, U.S. Pat. No. 4,957,480; Rooney, U.S. Pat. No. 4,189,141; Ruscitti et al., Des. 380,556; Ruscitti et al., Des. 359,362; and Golay, U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,249.
Additionally, the published literature has made reference in recent years to the health benefits of magnetic or biomagnetic treatments to compromised or diseased areas in general.
Specifically, the Rodriquez '494 patent reference teaches a support for a therapeutical magnet, to be strapped by belt and buckle to the body for therapeutic treatment; and a number of similar envelope-type support structures have been utilized to simply place, or strap, one magnet, or unitary magnet, flush and non-movably against the body for health benefits thereof.
The Morenings '480 reference teaches a method of facial toning, based on stimulation of motor nerves by application of predetermined galvanic currents, by means of continually moistened electrode tips.
Rooney '141 sets forth a mask for exercising facial muscles, by virtue of massive lead or omnium weights enclosed in pockets secured inside the mask, for positioning at brow, temple, cheek, nose and chin portions of a person. No magnetic differential, positioning or effect is taught in Rooney.
The Ruscitti '556 and '362 teach of way of design ornamentation a combination magnetic health and beauty mask, each having what appears to be positionally fixed, non-pivotal and non-moving magnetic members attached to the respective masks. Additionally, Ruscitti does not teach any accessible pocket or other means for varying polarity and magnetic differential; or replacement or variance of magnetic component elements to achieve therapeutic and health purposes.
Golay '249 simply teaches a markedly unrelated, air cleaning magnetic attachment for a welder's face mask.
Additionally, other prior art references have generally addressed other magnetic treatment of human tissue. Examples of this art includes McLeod, U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,413; Markoll, U.S. Pat. No. 5,665,049; and Graston, U.S. Pat. No. 5,707,346. McLeod relates to a method and apparatus for inducing a current and voltage in living tissue, with a device and means substantially distinguishable from the present invention. Markoll relates to a treatment of acute diseases as caused by the sports-type injuries of the musculoskeletal system (excluding fractures) with magnetic field therapy, utilizing a large annular coil surrounding the diseased organ; a coil which is energized by a pure DC voltage having a rectangular wave form pulsing at the rate of 1-30 CPS. And Graston relates to a system and method for performing soft tissue massage therapy, which utilizes a contoured tool connected to a source of electrical current for providing electrical stimulation to an impaired area. Each of these references is substantially different structurally and functionally from the present invention.
None of the references found in the prior art specifically illustrate or disclose the improved cosmetic and therapeutic mask assembly of the present invention. Nor is the present invention obvious in view of any of the prior art references listed. In addition, all of the relevant prior art heretofore known suffer from a number of disadvantages.
None of the prior art devices or method of use address accessible magnet bearing pocket members on a mask pattern for the purpose of moving parts of the mask by magnetic differential patterns to cause a cosmetic or health benefit from such a magnetic differential, along with the included repulsion (pushing) and attraction (pulling), as a part thereof, to cause a magnetically activated movement of adjacent skin and muscle tissue of a treatment subject.
Additionally, none of the prior art devices provide the structural and functional ability to utilize cylindrical configured magnets; nor do they provide the ability to utilize such magnets in flexible and multi-sectioned and jointed embodiments, to achieve greater flexible access and magnetic effect of adjacent or proximally located head, face or muzzle skin, nerve and muscle areas of a human or animal.
Additional limitations of the prior art also include flexibly adopt and magnetically serve, by virtue of repulsion and attraction, many different areas of the face or head of a treatment subject, including areas proximal or adjacent to eye, ear, nose, mouth and chin or muzzle areas of a treatment subject.
Also, other devices do not afford the user the ability to manually massage the selected area and also create respective positive-positive, negative-negative and positive-negative, magnetic pairings or couplings; to affect attracting/repelling energy, and circulation to adjacent areas of the head and face.
Other devices do not address or teach pivotable mounting while permitting accessible pocket stabilization of a plurality or number of flexible magnet elements, to prevent their collecting in a unitary group or mass, while also permitting access, positional movement, and replacement of different magnetic component embodiments (such as multi-sectioned and jointed, flexible magnets).
Also, the prior art devices do not adequately address the layering and fabric quality characteristics for best affecting transmittal and positioning of magnetic forces.
Further, none of the prior art devices or methods properly address the structural and functional ability to pull face or head tissue upward and outward by virtue of flexible or biasing force vectors of a mask pattern, while also and contemporaneously affecting through multiple and positionable magnetic component members a "pulling" together and "pushing" apart of skin and adjacent tissue; thus creating a movable physical and bio-magnetic effect, to address wrinkles, aging or pathology.
These and other disadvantages, structurally and functionally, of the prior art, will become apparent in reviewing the remainder of the present specification, claims and drawings.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mask-like pattern which affords the user or treatment recipient the ability to manually pivot and position rollable magnet components to, both, massage a selected treatment area, and create, by so positioning, a magnetic differential through respective pairings of positive-positive, negative-negative and positive-negative poles of individual magnets; to affect respective attraction and repulsion energy, and circulation-effect and treatment to areas of the head or face, or other chosen tissue treatment areas of the body of a human or animal. A further related object affords the ability in utilizing the present invention, to create such a magnetic differential through interchangeable, segmented (and flexible jointed) or integrally constructed flexible pivotable magnet members which have positive and negative poles by virtue, sturcturally, of lengthwise orientation or widthwise orientation, positionally; allowing for great diversity in affecting magnetic treatment of a skin and tissue area.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a flexible device providing pivotable mounted, accessible, and fluted pocket series stabilization of a number of flexible magnet members or components, preventing their collection in a mass, integral or unitary group, while still providing access and replacement of individual or respective magnet components, and flexible positioning for providing treatment to body areas.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a masked-pattern device and assembly having mesh fabric layering and fabric quality, to facilitate transmittal of magnetic forces (magnetic differential) and to facilitate flexible access to areas of the face, head, and body selected for treatment, therapy of massage.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a pattern assembly which supports and positions a plurality or number of magnetically interacting magnetic components, grouped respectively in series-positioned pockets, with each magnet element or component being flexible, powerful and variable, through widthwise or lengthwise magnetic poles, for creation of a magnetic differential, by virtue of respective magnetic pairings of positive-positive, negative-negative, and positive-negative poles on respective pairings of magnet members; brought about by flexible access and positioning of individually pivotally pocketed magnets.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a flexible and positionable magnet means which also provides the ability to utilize face or body cream, or therapeutic/medical fluids, while not detracting from the interacting magnetic effect of the inventions's respective plurality of movable magnet components, and their treatment effect.
It is yet a further object of the invention to provide a face-mask assembly, as well as other assemblies so constructed for other body locations, having the structural and functional ability to pull face, head or body overlying tissue upward and outward by virtue of flexible or biasing force vectors of the invention's main support pattern, while also and contemporaneously affecting through multiple and positionable magnetic component members a "pulling" together and "pushing" apart of skin and adjacent tissue; thus creating a movable physical and biomagnetic effect, to address existing wrinkles and/or pathology.
Further objects of the present invention also are set forth in providing a face mask assembly, where magnet components movably supported on the assembly, can be interchanged and replaced; and where all such magnets can be slideably and replaceably removed from the assembly so that it can be washed, dry-cleaned, laundered or otherwise cleaned when needed; or when lotions creams, or health or therapeutic fluids, utilizable in combination with the invention (and its function), are so utilized.
Yet a further object is achieved by the invention in providing a masked assembly which pivotally supports interacting magnetic components in an area very close to, or generally, positionally flush, against the skin or outerlying tissue of a treatment recipient; so that loss of magnetic differential (or poled magnetic) power (in accordance with the principal of loss of such magnetic power being a function of the treatment or positioned distance, `squared`) is efficiently minimized.
It will, therefore, be understood that substantial and distinguishable structural and functional advantages are realized in the present invention over the prior art devices; and that the present invention's novel structure, diverse utility, broad functional applications serve as important bases of novelty and distinction in this regard.